20 Fictional TV Bands That Rocked Your World

As a young rock journalist in the ‘70s, Cameron Crowe toured the country covering some of the biggest musical acts in the business. All that first-hand experience paid off when he transitioned from journalism to filmmaking. Crowe’s universally adored film, Almost Famous, is a semi-autobiographical love letter to the sounds and styles of that bygone era. And even though his new Showtime series Roadies takes place in the present, it’s equally attuned to the day-to-day realities behind the musical magic that happens when popular bands take the stage in concert venues packed with screaming fans.

Related: Ken Tucker Reviews 'Roadies’: Long May You Run?

As much as Almost Famous and Roadies work to keep it real — incorporating actual bands and songs into their narratives — each is based around the on-the-road exploits of a fictional band: Stillwater in the film and The Staton-House Band in the series. A five-man outfit with a classic rock soul, the Staton-House Band joins a long list of fictional musical acts whose sounds have kept TV audiences grooving over the decades. Here’s a round-up of 20 other notable TV bands we’d want to see featured on the playbill of an all-star Woodstock-type concert. (Special note to Monkees fans: Your fab four aren’t on this list because they played themselves on TV, not fictional characters.)

Roadies premieres Sunday, June 26 at 10 p.m. on Showtime.